RacecarWRX - VA 2015 WRX

[RacecarWRX]

Hi!

I've never done a "build" thread, so here it goes.

2015 WRX

INBOUND MODS:
KillerBee Performance Radiator



Next Trackday:
TBD


Performance Mods:
Killer Bee Charge Pipe
Killer Bee TMIC
Killer Bee J/I Pipe
Nameless Midpipe
Stock Axle Back
Grimmspeed EBCS
TIC TGV Deletes
IAG EGR Deletes
IAG Street AOS
Perrin Oil Cooler
Cobb AP
Cobb Flex Fuel


Tune:
Ron @ Phatbotti Tuning
350whp/350wtq on E62
270whp/311wtq on 91OCT


Brake Mods:
Essex AP Racing BBK CP9668 Endurance Calipers
Spiegler Brake Lines
Ferodo 3.1 / Raybesto ST45(front/rear)
3inch Brake Duct Kit
Perrin Master Cylinder Brake
Motul RBF 600


Suspension Mods:
MCS 2way non remote coilovers
HyperCo Springs 850lb/in Front 900 lb/in Rear
Vorshlag Rear Upper Shock Mounts
Full Spectrum Front Caster/Camber Mounts
Verus Rear LCAs
Verus Rear Toe arms
Self aligned in my garage
Daily Wheels - Titan 7 R10s 18x9.5 ET40 with 265/35/18 Pilot 4S
Track Wheels - Titan 7 R10s with 255/35/18 Federal FZ201(M)


Powertrain Mods:
Perrin Engine Mounts
Perrin Transmission Mounts
Kartboy Short Shifter Plate
PST Carbon Fiber drive shaft
R160 with Cusco RS set to 1.5 way @ 80% clutch configuration
Perrin Steering Damper Lockout
Castrol Edge 5W40 Engine Oil
Motul 75W140 Competition Rear Diff Oil
Motul Gear 300 transmission oil


Other:
Killer Bee Y tap for oil pressure
ARP 52mm Wheel Studs
Grimmspeed J pipe hardware
Rally Armor Mud Flaps
Racetech 4009 WTHR
Racetech Magnum 6pt FHR Harness
TC Design 4 point roll bar
Sparco Seat Brackets
Sparco Seat Slider
Planted Seat base


Telemetry Mods:
Autosport Labs Racecapture Pro 3
Autosport Labs AnalogX - Allows the Racecapture track to log the Defi senders in real time
Autosport Labs Shiftx3
Defi Oil Pressure Gauge
Defi Temperature Gauge - Used to monitor the rear LSD temperatures while at the track
Samsung 8inch Tablet as telemetry dashboard
Pixel XL for realtime lap timing display


Upcoming Mods:
More Seat time


Here is a photo of the dash layout:




Here is a photo at the track, Thunderhill Raceway (East):



Here is a video of my buddy in an STi chasing the WRX:

YouTube (Short URL)

YouTube (Short URL)

* Registered users of the site do not see these ads.

[RacecarWRX]

MCS 2 Way Non Remote Coilovers



Here is an unboxing and assembly video of the MCS Coilovers:

YouTube (Short URL)

YouTube (Short URL)

Assembled using:
Full Spectrum Caster/Camber Pillowball Top Mounts with perch bearing
Vorshlag Rear Pillowball Top Mounts with perch bearing
Hypercoil 650 lb/in Front Springs (7x2.25)
Hypercoil 700 lb/in Rear Springs (7x2.25)
Hypercoil Tender Spring (2.25)
Eibach Tender Spring/Main Spring coupler


I ran into a issue with the front upper spring perch. The perch would not slide completely over the front strut shaft. After inspecting the perch adapter sleeve, it look like there was some machining marks that was causing some interference. I chased the sleeve with a step tool, cleaned the sleeve, and the perch slipped right on.

[MORGSY]

Nice build! Loved and miss my 15 WRX. It's a very capable car to track when modded properly as you are doing, and a blast to drive.

[RacecarWRX]

Originally Posted by MORGSY

Nice build! Loved and miss my 15 WRX. It's a very capable car to track when modded properly as you are doing, and a blast to drive.

Fun cars and so far very reliable. *Knock on wood*

The motor does run hot though, and this year I'll be skipping the summer month or at least trying to hit some of the cooler weather tracks. I've seen my oil temps hit 270F+ and coolant go as high as 230F. She took it, but I don't want to see those temps again.

I'm going to try to keep this thread updated with the direction of the car. In reality, it is almost done. The rest will be dialing in the car, and making sure I can squeeze every last drop of performance out of it. Along the way, I'll try to address weaknesses that come up. I guess I'm at the end of the build, but really its like the beginning of where the real work starts...if that makes any sense.

Hopefully a lot more tweaking and tuning to come.

[RacecarWRX]

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bv4iFM-HEan/

A very big and heavy package arrived today.

RacecarWRX has a new set of corner scales. I'm all set to dial in the suspension and make the most out of these MCS coilovers. Excited!

[Scuby04STi]

Originally Posted by RacecarWRX

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bv4iFM-HEan/

A very big and heavy package arrived today.

RacecarWRX has a new set of corner scales. I'm all set to dial in the suspension and make the most out of these MCS coilovers. Excited!

Nice, I love mine and they have paid for themselves several times over!!!

Also good call on the MCS stuff, I swapped to the 2 way remotes near the end of last season and is was night and day over my older set-up that I was perfectly ok with, lol.

[MORGSY]

Originally Posted by RacecarWRX

Fun cars and so far very reliable. *Knock on wood*

The motor does run hot though, and this year I'll be skipping the summer month or at least trying to hit some of the cooler weather tracks. I've seen my oil temps hit 270F+ and coolant go as high as 230F. She took it, but I don't want to see those temps again.

I'm going to try to keep this thread updated with the direction of the car. In reality, it is almost done. The rest will be dialing in the car, and making sure I can squeeze every last drop of performance out of it. Along the way, I'll try to address weaknesses that come up. I guess I'm at the end of the build, but really its like the beginning of where the real work starts...if that makes any sense.

Hopefully a lot more tweaking and tuning to come.

It does like to run a little warm at times.

Ran mine in the Socal summer 100+ degree weather, with some of the same mods you have for cooling (Killer B TMIC, Charge Pipe and Perrin Oil Cooler) and added a couple of gallons of race gas to help keep the temps down.

- Added you on IG

[RacecarWRX]

Originally Posted by Scuby04STi

Nice, I love mine and they have paid for themselves several times over!!!

Also good call on the MCS stuff, I swapped to the 2 way remotes near the end of last season and is was night and day over my older set-up that I was perfectly ok with, lol.

You know what surprised me? How freaking heavy they are! Holy hell, I tried moving the box when UPS dropped it of and **** my pants trying to pick it up.

Thanks for the vote of confidence on the MCSs. I've heard a lot of great things, and figured I would shoot near the top this time around. I wish I could try a 3 way remote setup, but the price is out of my range. Mounting the cans, although easy, would also likely involve some cutting and I'm not ready to make that leap with the car yet.

I'm excited to put everything on and make a few videos of the whole process.

Originally Posted by MORGSY

It does like to run a little warm at times.

Ran mine in the Socal summer 100+ degree weather, with some of the same mods you have for cooling (Killer B TMIC, Charge Pipe and Perrin Oil Cooler) and added a couple of gallons of race gas to help keep the temps down.

- Added you on IG

Thunderhill is the same way. I was up there 6 months ago in the middle of summer, 108F. I grew up in the valley of So Cal, so I know heat....but it has been a "hot minute". Honestly, I couldn't push the car all the way. I'd get in maybe 3-4 laps, then have to do a cool down lap. If you ever happen to do a track day up here, let me know. Vise versa.

Thanks for the IG add, and I hit you back too.

[Scuby04STi]

Yeah, not light but thats not what matters for those types of things I honestly want them overbuilt.

Zero point in the 3-ways IMO unless your making money racing, lol. I talked with the guys at MCS extensively and thats why I landed on the 2-way with remotes (I cut my car up long ago, lol).

[Lissa77]

Originally Posted by Scuby04STi

Yeah, not light but thats not what matters for those types of things I honestly want them overbuilt.

Zero point in the 3-ways IMO unless your making money racing, lol. I talked with the guys at MCS extensively and thats why I landed on the 2-way with remotes (I cut my car up long ago, lol).

+1

[RacecarWRX]

Originally Posted by Scuby04STi

Yeah, not light but thats not what matters for those types of things I honestly want them overbuilt.

Zero point in the 3-ways IMO unless your making money racing, lol. I talked with the guys at MCS extensively and thats why I landed on the 2-way with remotes (I cut my car up long ago, lol).

I've had some guys tell me that 3 ways are like magic. The low speed high speed adjustment really makes a huge difference but that's just word of mouth. I haven't had a chance to drive a car equipped with a brand name 3 way and draw my own conclusion. Maybe one day....

[kos]

Nice stuff here for sure.

Heard good things about MCS, considering going 2 Way this offseason year myself, but have a laundry list of other stuff to attend to first

[RacecarWRX]

Toss me a follow on IG or sub the Youtube channel for updates!!

IG: RacecarWRX
Youtube: RacecarWRX

[RacecarWRX]

Another video for the Tube!

Today I unbox and assemble some hubstands to take our alignment game to the next level.

CSM Performance Hubstand Unbox and Assembly - YouTube

CSM Performance Hubstand Unbox and Assembly - YouTube

Please like and subscribe if you'd like to keep up to date on my journey with the RacecarWRX!

[RacecarWRX]

Over the past month, I've been trying to piece together front and rear adjustable endlinks for the WRX. Being prototypes, I've run into issues and have been forced to work through some random clunks. At this point, I think the endlinks are near their final form and are clunk free. All that is left is to beat the crap out of them on potholes and the track.

Here is a video of me working on the rear endlinks on the WRX. I suspect that the rear aluminum spacers had deformed, and while inspection look OK, I decided to replace the aluminum spacers with steel ones.

After 2-3 hours driving on some back mountain roads, the rear endlinks are holding up well.

2015 WRX Custom Rear Adjustable Swaybar Endlinks - YouTube

2015 WRX Custom Rear Adjustable Swaybar Endlinks - YouTube

[RacecarWRX]

IG: RacecarWRX
Youtube: RacecarWRX



Car was in the garage for a nice wheel alignment and corner balancing! Testing out all the new hardware for the alignment.

Everything went swimmingly up until the last few checks before bringing the car off the alignment rig. I notice the rear had slip out of my desired targets and went to make some adjustment. Playing around, I realized the rear inboard LCA mount had a seized rod end. Totally my fault too.

Verus/Velox tells you to run the rod full inserted then to run the extender furthur out, IF you want a lot of camber. Originally the car started with 1 degree of negative, now I'm looking for 2.2+ degrees of camber. As a result, I think the rod end shaft bent.

I quickly put the stock lca on, and the car came off the alignment rig to be parked until I can get Verus/Velox to send me spare parts. Very annoyed at myself for missing that specific part of the instructions, and it should have been stupid obvious. Beat myself all night over such a dumb mistake.

In any case, I never finished the alignment although I was so freaking close. So close to finally testing out the new suspension setup.

As a summary:
1. Full Spectrum Plates are ****ing money. MONEY. I had them set at max camber during the coilover install and when I threw on the alignment stuff got a reading of 4+ degrees. Awesome! I also had a conversation with Luke (the owner) about caster positions on the plates. The plates offer 12+ degrees of caster and stock caster is generally achieved in the first 2 or 3 mounting position. Yaaaaaassss..... oh yaaaasss. I'm drooling over these, and can't wait to fiddle and test more.

2. Hubstand - Worked wonderfully. Although, I feel that the balls could roll better. I suspect its my corner scale surface. It is aluminum and is grooving a bit under the weight of the car. I'm thinking about making a metal plate to keep everything smooth. The Toe arms that come with the stands are great, its so much easier to setup my strings, level my strings and make adjustments. I pop my metal ruler onto the magnets, and make the toe change in real time. The hubs turn, the ruler moves, and I can read the toe as turn the eccentric or turn buckle. I'm so happy with these.

3. Pad levelers, what a pain in the back. Really. Leveling the pads is a total pain, and my back is paying the price for having to hunch over and level the pads to one another. Luckily I marked this location on the garage floor, and over time I'll check and make sure everything stays level. Hopefully I won't have to do this often, for my back's sake.

4. Corner Balancing - Here is the sheet tracking the corner balancing. I'm actually surprised that the WRX weighed 3050ish pounds without the driver. I guess it helps that I have seat, the lightweight bbk, and was a little under half a tank. I did leave the spare in to simulate fuel weight, as that comes out at the track. Car also had my weight in the driver seat. That front left (driver side) is heavy and I'd love to move some weight from that side over to the right. Looks like 40-50lbs would be perfect, but I don't think there is much I can do there. Maybe lose some weight and find a spot for the battery? Might be my next adventure, we will see. Oh wait, no rims and tires on...that might be why it seemed so light.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets...it?usp=sharing


Again, I'm totally bummed it didn't go well the first time out of the gate but it happens. However, I love this stuff and will give it another go next week. Fingers crossed! P.s. A video documenting this entire process will be coming in the following weeks. I've been trying to film everything so anyone can follow what I do and how I do.

[Scuby04STi]

Glad you got to play with your new toys!

As for the hubstands for making adjustments, you might go buy some uhmw or delron sheets to sandwitch under them so they slide better. Aluminum used on the carner weights is going to get damaged over time and groove as you mentioned.

[RacecarWRX]

Originally Posted by Scuby04STi

Glad you got to play with your new toys!

As for the hubstands for making adjustments, you might go buy some uhmw or delron sheets to sandwitch under them so they slide better. Aluminum used on the carner weights is going to get damaged over time and groove as you mentioned.

Its unfortunate that my brand new set of corner scales immediately grooved up, so sad. I guess it was going to happen sooner or later. I actually corresponding with CSM Performance yesterday, and he mentioned that a few owners have brought this issue to his attention.

We chatted briefly, and decided the best route would be to make some 15x15 metal plates that can rest on top of the scales, just as you suggested. I'm not sure how strong derlin is, but that's a cheap and effective material suggestion. Colton, owner of CSM Performance and a VA wrx owner, was thinking stainless steel. Stainless is hard as hell and won't rust, but it might drive up the cost significantly.

First things first, he is going to work on determining the thickness required to avoid grooving.

I'll look into the delrin. Probably need to figure out the ball bearing size, load per ball, and compare that to the rockwell hardness of delriin available. There is a chance it might not be hard enough to withstand the weight but worth investigating!

[RacecarWRX]

Two weeks ago I had the time to install the MCS Coilovers. I made a quick video, but I doubt it will be very interesting to anyone. It's a coilover install, not particularly difficult.

Things to note:
Position 2 or 3 on the Full Spectrum Plates provide stockish caster. Position 2 or 3 depends on which side of the car you are installing the plates on.
Driver side, you rotate the plate counter clock wise to gain caster. Starting from a group of holes in the farthest right position, you rotate the plate counter clock wise to position 2 or 3.
Passenger side, you rotate the plate clock wise to gain caster. Starting from the a group of holes in the farthest left position, you rotate clockwise to position 2 or 3.

For the first time in the life of the car, the front lower strut bolts seemed more difficult to install and remove than usual. Maybe it is starting to see its age.. ?

Stay tuned, in the upcoming videos I show you how to setup the garage for a DIY alignment, then execute said alignment. I even share my secret on how to hold your wheel while working on the front toe! As an extra bonus, the car has two events to attend for the Month of May, meaning we should have some pretty cool data to review from the telemetry system and.... VIDEOS!!!

YouTube (Short URL)

YouTube (Short URL)

[RacecarWRX]

I had a little time with the car this weekend, and took the chance to install the new Raceseng tug straps.

Raceseng released these straps a week ago, and I've been patiently waiting for these. Over that past year, I've been using the factory tow hook, however I've been worried about how far the tow hook sticks out past the bumper. These new Raceseng tug straps use a short bolt, which is recessed into the crash bar. The one issue with these Raceseng tug straps, is the fitment for the rear of the WRX/STi. The bolt is too short to engage the thread on the rear tow hook mount. Part of the problem is a plate that has a small diameter, which blocks the bolt from reaching. My solution, drill the plate out.

YouTube (Short URL)

YouTube (Short URL)

[RacecarWRX]

Oopsie, double post.

[uofime]

Looking forward to seeing how your events go!

[RacecarWRX]

Originally Posted by uofime

Looking forward to seeing how your events go!

Me too!! Luckily I have a few datalogs from HDPEs last year, so I plan on putting together some videos where I dig through data and try see where the coilovers have helped improved the car's performance.

[RacecarWRX]

Next video following the MCS Coilover install. Again, not a particularly interesting video per say. I fix a diagnosis/fix a clunk, then prepare the hubstands and corner scale leveling pads.

The hubstands are wonderful, I can't believe I've been aligning cars without hubstands for the last 6 years. Worth every penny.

Leveling pads is a lot of work, and particularly hard on your back. You gotta make small changes, so you don't chase your tail around and around. I actually re-leveled the pads again yesterday and plan on double checking the corner balance before hitting the track next week. If you plan on doing your own alignments, I suggest investing in the tools to level your pads. Without level pads, you are weight jacking or corner jacking your car, IE: creating a non 50/50 cross weight. You'll need leveling pads preferably with roll offs, high quality levels (short and long), and 3-2-1 blocks. The short levels are used to level the "reference" pad. The long level is used to make sure all other pads are level to your reference. The 3-2-1 blocks are used by machinist, and are designed to be perfectly flat. I used them as a base for my long level between the pads.

YouTube (Short URL)

YouTube (Short URL)

[anarekist]

great build, love your garage.